The present invention is directed to a new and improved method and apparatus for making folded sheets such as outserts which are often very long, for instance, 9 inches to 50 inches in length and which are folded a number of times with the outermost fold of the outsert being glued tight to an inner fold to make a tight folded packet called an outsert. Currently, outsert machines require a plurality of operators to run the machine which adds significantly to the cost of the individual outsert and the machines are limited in the amount of production of outserts per hour. The present invention is directed to providing increased speeds of operation up to, for example, 10,000 sheets per hour or more and to providing a machine at such production which may be run by one operator.
The usual higher production machines currently available prior to this invention are sheet machines which use pre-cut sheets and which operate at much slower rates, for example, 1500 to 2500 outserts per hour. Also, these pre-cut sheet machines may have a problem from a security standpoint in that the pre-printed sheets can be mixed either deliberately, or inadvertently such that the wrong outsert may be inserted into the wrong package. As will be explained, the present invention also may be used to fold pre-cut sheets and to form outserts therefrom but the preferred embodiment of the invention has a roll of outserts preprinted on a web which is unwound and cut into sheets prior to the folding and gluing of the wrap-around fold to the inner fold.
The present invention is also directed to providing increased security and reliability of matching of the outserts to the medicine by having the equipment provided with "readers" which read indicia on the webs and which are programmed to fold outserts only when the proper indicia or locations of indicia appear on the web which is for the pharmaceutical to which the outsert is to be inserted.
Also another aspect of the invention is the automatic boxing of the outserts, which may be coming off the equipment at rates of 42,000 outserts per hour into boxes without requiring a separate operator to box the outserts at the discharge end of the apparatus.
Another aspect of the present invention is that of improved folding and glueing units, which are controlled by a microprocessor to provide greater precision control of the sheets for folding and slitting and for stacking.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved method and apparatus for folding sheets such as outserts.
These and other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description taken into connection with the accompanying drawings: